When I'm Gone
by Sirell
Summary: The 19 years old Tsuna has taken over the Vongola with his guardians, and moved to Italy. One day he finds himself in a hospital room. Not knowing what had happened, he went to find his friends. But when he tried to talk to them, something was strange... they couldn't see or hear him...
1. Prologue

Hello! This is my first fic EVER, so... it's not perfect. There are probably grammar errors as well, since I'm just studying the language. Anyways, I hope you enjoy the first chapter!

* * *

It was dark.

Tsuna slowly opened his eyes, but everything was just a blur in front of him.

A cold breeze which came from the window's direction, touched his cheeks. When his vision somehow became clear, he could see the white ceiling with small cracks, and long lamps lining up parallelly on it.

The brunet carefully sat up on the creased sheeted bed. His body felt unusually light.

The boy looked around, expecting to see the usual morning scene. But something was wrong.

He could only see an infusion stand and a ventilator.

Also, a medical instrument was beeping beside him. He stared at it for a few seconds. Wait a minute... this room...

'...!'

The boy's eyes widened as he realized where he was. '_This... could it be.. a hospital room?! ...Why am I in a hospital room?'_

The brunet wanted to remember what had happened, but his head started to hurt if he tried to do so.

The window was open and the wind made the white curtain dance in the semidarkness as a sudden breeze entered the room.  
He swung his legs off the bed, and slowly stood up. He was walking towards the door barefoot, the tiled floor was so cold that he shuddered at every step. He grabbed the iron handle of the door and opened it. The brunet peeked out, but the corridor was empty. No one disturbed it's peace. The rising sun's golden beams were slowly creeping up on the beige coloured walls. He stepped out of the strange room and started to look for the way out of this maze of aisles. He was walking slowly trying to collect his thoughts.

* * *

_-A year before-_

Tsuna decided to take over the Vongola when he turned 18.

It was a hard decision, but he had to do it in order to protect his Family.

In the past few years many assassins tried to kill the Boss candidate as soon as the information of his whereabouts leaked. There was no escaping anymore. He and his Guardians had to become stronger and stonger. Not to mention the future boss knew it deep inside that it was the right decision.

He will change the Vongola for the better.

His ancestor, Primo, would have wanted that too.

The inheritance ceremony was held once again, but this time everything went smoothly. All of their friends came to congratulate them.

Not long after that, Reborn advised him to move to Italy.

Of course, he refused it first, but in the end the young Boss gave in.

Naturally, this also meant all of his Guardians were going with him as well. None of them resisted.

It was hard for Tsuna to leave Namimori. He had already said goodbye to his mother, to Kyoko, Haru, and all his remaining friends. All of his memories hit him hard int he chest as he was going to the airport with Reborn.

He remembered playing and laughing with his friends, their crazy everyday life they had lived together.

They had so much fun. The brunet wished it would last forever. But it was impossible.

A little teardrop escaped his eyes. But it had disappeared the moment he saw his Guardians at the airport's entrance, all of them smiling. Well, except Hibari. He was keeping the distance from the others and was standing a little further away with his baggage lying next to him. Tsuna couldn't help but smile and wave to his friends.

They traveled by a private plane which had been arranged by Reborn. The journey was long and tiring, (not to mention certain guardians had been quarreling over unworthy things all the way) but they finally arrived in Florence, Italy.

It was like a whole different world. They had previously attended an Italian language course, but it was still difficult to understand people in real life.

At the airport, a long, pitch black limusin was waiting for them with a chauffeur. Everybody was very excited and got in immediately, except Tsuna and Hibari. The brunet was embarrassed to get in the luxurious limo. But a kick in the head by Reborn got him in the vehicle.

Hibari let out a "Hmph." but he got in too. After two hours they finally arrived at the Vongola Headquarters. The mansion was huge and mighty. Tsuna knew it wasn't small, but it was so much bigger than he expected. Yamamoto was grinning wider than usual, Gokudera was trying to remain cool, but a slight blush appeared on his face. The 9 years old Lambo looked excited, Ryouhei was as energetic as ever, and Chrome was hiding behind her Boss. Hibari seemed like he didn't care, but he was impressed as well.

At the gate subordinates grabbed their luggage and carried them away. A butler was standing next to them and bowed deeply.

"Welcome, Vongola Decimo and his family."

A slight blush appeared on the boss' cheeks. He wasn't used to such formality.

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Alessandro and it's a great honour to be able to serve Vongola Decimo and his Guardians in the future." the butler held out his hand. The young boss was a bit nervous, but he gulped, took a deep breath and shook the man's white gloved hand. He put a gentle smile on his face. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Please take good care of me and my family."

Reborn was just smiling under his hat thinking that his student had grown up.

"I certainly will." answered the man with closed eyes.

The black suited butler opened the gate which was equipped by several security systems and was strongly guarded.

Having led the Guardians through the beautifully kept garden, the butler opened the main door and everybody entered the mansion. As soon as they caught a glimpse of the hall, it took their breath away. It was full of expensive-looking furniture, the walls were decorated with paintings by Picasso and Van Gogh. It was like some royality's home... do all mafia bosses live like this? The guardians were walking around their new homes in amazement.

The servants and subordinates were standing around them welcoming the new boss. Most of them really respected him and even bowed. However, some whispering could be heard from the other direction.

"Is this the new Boss?"

"Isn't he too young?"

"There's no way this boy could lead our Famiglia."

"Why did Nono choose a kid like this?"

"His guardians are a bunch of kids too"

The young boss did hear these insults, but just continued walking and ignored them. However, they couldn't be unheard by a certain silver haired bomber who was now pissed off. 'Who dared to insult the Tenth?!' but the boy didnt's say anything out loud, as Tsuna grabbed his shoulder and looked at the teen telling him to stop. The right hand man just gave a deadly glare to the ignorant gang to shut their mouths. They became pale and just bowed. They continued walking forward.

The butler showed each guardian their room. The Guardian's room surrounded Tsuna's from every direction. It was designed that way to grant greater safety for the Boss. Tsuna's was the biggest and most luxurious room, of course. The one who had claimed to be the boss' right hand man got the nearest room to Decimo of all. The most far and most separated room was the Cloud Guardian's. Everybody was satisfied with their new home.

Days, weeks, then months had passed and everybody started to get used to their new lives. They had been training regularly and they had even went on missions.

The young Boss had to do all the paperwork even if he didn't want to. There had been a few assassination attempts by power hungry Famiglias, but they couldn't even get close to the Decimo. He had to attend meetings with other bosses occasionally.

On his first meeting he was very nervous, since he had the highest rank among all the bosses in the room, thus his opinion was the most important. As he attended more and more meetings, the young boss slowly became more and more confident.

A year had passed like this.

* * *

_-That day-_

" Are you sure, it's okay?" the now rather tall brunet was standing in front of the mirror in his room, fixing his black suit.

"Don't worry, it really suits you, Tenth! " complimented his boss the right hand man who was standing behind him proudly in a similiar suit.

"Yeah, you look good, Tsuna." grinned the tallest teen standing at the door, a sword resting on his right shoulder.

Tsuna let out a small smile and tightened his black tie.

"Let's go then."

An important meeting was going to be held at the other side of the country. His closest guardians, the Guardian of Rain and the Guardian of Storm were chosen to protect Vongola Decimo.

When everything was ready, they got in the black limo and set off.

The young boss looked like he was troubled by something. Yamamoto noticed this.

"Hm? Tsuna, is there something wrong?" the brunet snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the swordsman.

"I-It's nothing..." he tried to smile " It's just... I feel like something is wrong.."

The bomber who was sitting on Tsuna's right straightened himself " There's no need to worry, Tenth! I'm not gonna let anybody to get near you!"

The boss smiled nervously. "Thank you, Gokudera-kun...But this time I feel something different. Like something bad will happen"

* * *

_-Now-_

"..."

This was the last thing he could remember. What exactly happened...?

When he turned left at the next corner, his eyes widened. He finally found someone! And it was... Gokudera?!

The brunet was glad that he found his friend. He called out to him smiling.

"Gokudera-kun! I'm so happy that I found you!"

But the silver haired didn't hear it. He was walking towards the young boss' room with a bunch of flowers in his hands, looking down.

"..." Tsuna ran to him "Gokudera-kun?" but still nothing. He was just walking forward. "Is there something wrong?" the brunet asked again.

... no answer. It was like he didn't even see him. The bomber knocked on the door of the room where Tsuna was, and clenched his fist.

" I'm coming in... Tenth." he bit his lower lip.

Tsuna ran to the door and stopped it from closing " Hey, Gokudera-kun, can't you hear me?"

The silver haired boy put down the flowers then fell on his knees next to the bed. " I-I'm sorry, Tenth..." he shuddered "I'm sorry..."

Tsuna was couldn't believe what he saw. His eyes widened. "I-It's... impossible..."

The one he could see lying on the bed... was _**himself**_.

* * *

So yeah... that was it. The story barely even started lol

But I had to give some background information.

I welcome reviews, I need a lot of advice.


	2. Can you see me?

Hello! So here's the new chapter~

Umm... I hope you like it^^

* * *

Tsuna was standing at the door, shocked. He saw _himself_ lying in the hospital bed, connected to a ventilator and various medical equipment. His body looked pale and lifeless. It was like those machines were the only things keeping him alive.

His friend was kneeling beside his bed with shadowed eyes. He stayed like that for several took a deep breath, stopped trembling and slowly stood up. He then turned towards the door where Tsuna was, and gave a sharp glare.

"So you came too." he muttered.

The brunet froze.

Then a tall figure appeared behind him. He turned back and saw... Yamamoto?!

"Well, of course..." the swordsman limped into the room, as if he didn't see Tsuna standing there. He was covered in bandages and was using a crutch. His smile wasn't that bright like usual. "I wanted to check on his condition as well"

The bomber just grumbled something like "Just drag yourself back to your room and don't come here with those injuries, you idiot." turned away uncaring. Then he looked at the unconscious boss with a pained expression.

"... the doctors said... the Tenth is in a coma " he clenched his fist " and... there's a great possibility that he won't wake up." it was very hard for him to say these words. He just couldn't believe it... his precious Tenth was practically dying. And he couldn't do anything. Nothing at all.

The room became quiet.

The brunet was stunned. _' Am I... in a coma? But... I'm here. I'm standing right here.'_ he clutched his chest and lowered his head.

"Gokudera-kun, Yamamoto" he reached out to touch Yamamoto's wounded shoulder.

"I'm here. You can hear me, right?" he asked, still looking down. He tightened his grasp.

There was no answer. He bit his lips.

"I-It's not funny, guys..." he laughed nervously " Don't act like I'm not here..." he slightly trembled.

It was the most painful he could experience. Not physically, but mentally. He couldn't tell his friends that everything is alright with a smile. He was all alone now, and nobody could hear his desperate callings and no one could see or hear him anymore.

He wanted them to comfort him.

"P-please.." he clenched his teeth.

An army of questions were running through his mind. _'What is happening? Is this a bad dream? Why can I see myself lying in the bed? Please, let it only be some nightmare. I- I'm scared...' _a small teardrop ran down on his face but he immediately wiped it off.

He took a deep breath and tried to calm down.

What if... what if his soul has left his body...? He was practically half-dead and only machines were keeping him alive after all. No, it sounds ridiculous... There's no way something like that could happen.

**...right?**

"Tenth... it's all our fault, please forgive us.." the bomber bowed his head over the bed "we... couldn't protect you..." he grabbed his boss's pale hand. "I fail as a right hand man!" the remorse was slowly killing him inside and couldn't hold it in anymore. "Please...please, Tenth, wake up.."

Yamamoto frowned and looked down guilty. "Gokudera, that's enough. We should let him rest for a while." he grabbed the silver haired boy's shoulder.

Gokudera shaked off the swordsman's hand and just went silent.

Tsuna was watching them worried. He just wanted to say _'It's alright, you two...' _with a comforting smile.

"Have you... reported _it _to the others yet?" asked Yamamoto with a serious expression after a long pause. "They have to know that Tsuna is in a critical condition."

It was their responsibility to keep their boss safe after all, but they failed to do so. They couldn't forgive themselves.

"I know, baseball-freak" turned away the bomber "They're already on their way"

* * *

_"__**Thank you, Gokudera-kun...But this time I feel something different. Like something bad will happen"**_

_The boss and his two Guardians have been travelling for an hour. They were going through a desolated suburb. _

_Yamamoto was resting with crossed arms, Gokudera was leaning on the crimson seat's backrest and Tsuna was sitting between them, being lost in thoughts. They were all silent. Then-,_

_-Bang!-_

_The car screeched and spun on the road, then stopped._

_"What the hell was that?!" yelled at the chauffeur the confused Storm Guadian._

_"It seems we've been attacked!" the driver checked the fuel gauge " They shot the fuel tank... this is no good" the fuel was slowly leaking. If it keeps going like this, the car won't be able to move._

_The boss clenched his fist and teeth._

_"Please fasten your seat belts! I'll try to lose them with the leftover fuel" warned them the driver and as he stepped on the accelerator, the vehicle set off with a squeaking sound. The car was going incredibly fast._

_More gunshots could be heard. The bulletproof windows wouldn't let the bullets get in, but it can't last forever. They had to do something soon. The limo took a few sharp turns causing it to tilt from right to left and vice versa. Over and over again._

___The chauffeur was focusing on the road. He thrilled because he could use his excellent driving skills. An another car were speeding up behind them "They don't seem to give up" he grinned nervously._

___After a while, the windows couldn't take the pressure anymore and they smashed in. _The Storm and the Rain Guardian were protecting Decimo with their bodies from the falling broken glass. "Bulletproof window my ass!" muttered Gokudera as the window couldn't protect them anymore.

_"Ngh...!" Yamamoto got shot in the shoulders as a bullet got in the car. He was in pain, but still protected Tsuna and didn't tell the others he was shot. __The car took a sharp turn again. Also, the fuel tank was almost entirely empty._

_"Stop it"_

_Both guardians looked at the brunet between them "Eh?"_

_"Stop the car, now!" commanded the boss once again, lowering his head._

_The chauffeur hesitated " But Decimo, It's too dangerous! What are you planning?!" he focused on the road again._

_"I said stop the car" __he raised his head looking dead serious. __I'm going to stop them right here" _

_The atmosphere changed and everybody went quiet. Yamamoto broke the silence._

_"If that so...Tsuna, just leave them to us" grinned the baseball-freak, trying to cover the pain and he pulled out his sword "We can't let you fight with them when we are here to protect you" despite the promising words, tsuna saw through Yamamoto._

_"Just as the idiot said..." the bomber hated to agree with him, but he had a point. "Tenth, let me take care of them!"_

_"No. You two shall stay in the car. __**I**__ am the one who's going to do it." his eyes reflected determination and stubbornness, In spite of all that, the guardians wanted to protest "But Tsu-" _

_At that moment the driver clenched his teeth and slammed on the brakes so the vehicle suddenly stopped. "..."_

_"Thank you" the boss let out a faint smile and got out of the car. The chauffeur was looking down._

_"Tenth!/Tsuna!" his friends snapped at him. "Don't do anything reckless! _

_"I won't" He answered with shadowed eyes and walked forward. He clenched his fists and suddenly powerful orange flames surrounded him. It's light was dazzling. The brunet's eyes were sharp and it was like they were glowing orange. His people in the car couldn't help but just stare at him._

_"Hey." he called out to the people who were getting out if other car that had stopped a moment ago."What if you bastards leave us alone for once?!" the young boss was extremely pissed off. He had been the victim of many assassination attempts already. And it wasn't the only problem. His Family was attacked too. Because of him. His friends got hurt protecting him. It... was unforgivable. 'I can't let you hurt my family anymore!' flames grew even greater._

_He got surrounded by ten armed men pointing their guns at him __within a second_. The boss just glanced at them calmly then closed his eyes. He then flew up with an incredible speed. 

_"H-He disappeared?!" one of those men backed. "No! He's behind you!" shouted an other. _

_The man tried to shoot him, but the brunet dodged the bullet. "You can't defeat me with just guns" said with an icy glare. A guy with glasses ran towards him behind his back, trying to attack him, but the boss noticed it, and threw him to the ground. Right after that another two came, but Tsuna just punched them in the stomach. He sighed. He couldn't believe he got attacked by these guys. What were they thinking? The Decimo was much stronger than that. In the end, only three of them were standing, but they were too scared to attack him. _

_"So. Tell me who you are working for." he was even more angry than before. The men were just shaking._

_"Oh, I see." chuckled a tall, black haired man behind the frowning boss. "Just as I thought. Vongola Decimo is not just some weakling who can't protect himself. In fact, he is much stronger than I expected." he smiled deviously "This way, it is going to be even more amusing to defeat you, __**Sawada Tsunayoshi**__."_

* * *

To be continued...

:]


	3. What happened

Hello! First, I'm sorry it took a bit long, but I had to rewrite it because I didn't really like the first version. I hope it came out better...^^

* * *

Everything went silent. Only the wind was playing with the two men's hair. The defeated assassins either ran away or were lying on the street unconscious.

The young boss glared back to see the mysterious person's smirking face.

"You... you must be the one who planned out all this mess, am I right?" he frowned at him.

The man just closed his emerald eyes in agreement.

"The so called 'assassins' you've sent on me were just a waste of time." he sighed, then a big amount of pure sky flames left his body.

"Even so, one of my friends got hurt. Don't think you'll get away with this." rage reflected in his glowing eyes.

"Not in a good mood, I see." the man chuckled. "You defeating my men is part of my plan"

_'Plan? What plan? Wasn't this just a poorly organised assassination attempt...? ...It doesn't matter, I can't let this guy get away'_

Tsuna using his flames' impact, disappeared from the man's vision and tried to punch him from behind. However, the raven haired successfully dodged the attack. He dodged the next one as well. Then again.

_'...Well, he's indeed on a different level than the , I won't wait any longer' _The young boss was prepared to fire an X Burner.

"I don't want to waste any more time on you." he thought of Yamamoto and his injury. His friend needed to be taken to a hospital as soon as possible.

The brunet closed his eyes, took a deep breath and whispered "X Burner" and powerful flames ejected from his hands as a ray.

After the explosion, the smoke was slowly disappearing only to reveal the perfectly fine man who was still standing.

_'What?! He withstood the X Burner without a scratch?!' _the young boss' eyes widened. It was like a strange aura surrounded and protected the man. He touched one of his rings and the aura disappeared. Just... who the hell is he?

"Vongola Decimo. The rumors were true. In spite of the fact that you are just a kid, so much power flows in you" the man walked closer

"That's why I can't let you live" his expression became serious.

The man with emerald eyes suddenly took out a weird gun from his suit's inside pocket and pointed it at the Tenth's head, whose eyes widened for a second.

"Then again, I'm not afraid of guns." he switched back to a srious expression and kept his cool.

When he was younger, he used to freak out if he saw a gun.

Reborn would threaten him with that thing if his homework wasn't perfect or he didn't do something as the spartan tutor said. As years passed he eventually got used to them, he even attended a shooting course, which was -according to Reborn- necessary for a mafia boss. Maybe the arcobaleno had a point. The young boss now can shoot anything in a 200 meter radius and dodge any bullet no matter how many, or from where was it shot.

The man chuckled and put his finger on the trigger. " Then escape... if you can, that is."

It was child's play. However, Tsuna could sense other people's presence from the bushes nearby. Apparently, snipers were hiding there, waiting for their prey. It made the escaping a little more difficult.

"Tsuna!" a familiar voice could be heard. _'Yamamoto...?" _The young boss froze. Didn't he tell them to stay in the car?! Those snipers are ready to shoot anytime...!

"Tenth!" an other worried friend were running to their direction. _'Gokudera-kun too?!__'_

The young boss looked at the smirking man's face, then his eyes widened in realization. "You... are you trying to-...!" the expression on the raven haired man's face told him he was right. The brunet snarled and looked at his friends"Yamamoto, Gokudera-kun, don't come here, it's dangerous!" the two halted at their boss' deadly serous glance. The emerald eyed took advantage of the fact the brunet wasn't paying attention. He whispered something into the boss' ear from behind. Tsuna's eyes widened. Then-

_Bang!_

The boy's powerless body slowly fell down on the ground. The Guardians were just standing there, stunned...

* * *

_**Flashback- In the Limo **_

The three men were sitting in the vehicle. The atmosphere was tense. They could hear the assassins screaming outside. It sounded like Tsuna could deal with the problem so they needn't worry. More screaming could be heard.

"Tsuna really is angry, isn't he?" grinned nervously the swordsman. He was sweating hardly because of the pain in his shoulder.

"Of course he is, baseball-freak! Those damn idiots dared to attack us, and it turned out they can't even fight properly...what kind of bullshit is that." he crossed his arms and he was pissed off. " They just waste the Boss' precious time"

The chauffeur's eyes were hidden under his hat. It seemed like he was thinking.

"Don't you think it's strange?" the guardians looked at him " To attack us, they had to track down our location, and with Vongola's security system it's quite difficult. It must have been a pre-planned attack. Even so, those men don't seem to be experienced or organised at all. It feels like... their boss is just testing Decimo before he makes his move."

The two guardians were just staring at him. " E-eh? I-I'm sorry... maybe I'm just overthinking things..."

"No. Actually, you have a point." Yamamoto answered surprisingly seriously. "We should go and help him, before anything happens-" he grabbed his sword "Ugh..." he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his wounded shoulder.

"Oi, baseball-freak, you're bleeding! Don't tell me you've been shot?!" the silver haired bomber approached the injured guardian.

"Maa maa, it's nothing" he tried to cover the pain with a grin.

"Don't play the tough guy, idiot." frowned at him " The boss must have noticed your wound, that's why he wouldn't let us fight..." he clenched his fist. The Tenth always thinks about his friends.

"So you stay here and I, his right hand man'll go help him!" the bomber grabbed the car's door handle.

At that moment the Limo jumped a bit as a shock wave reached it, and a loud explosion could be heard.

It was the impact of the X Burner.

The two guardians' eyes sharpened. "Let's go" the Rain Guardian jumped out of the car and despite the pain, he grabbed his sword.

"Wait, Yamamoto-san!" shouted after him the chauffeur.

" Tch, that idiot" then Gokudera started to run as well.

They didn't run for long when they saw a tall, black haired man with emerald green eyes, pointing a gun at their precious boss. This is no good. Tsuna was in danger! They definitely had to do something...!

They didn't care about anything else, just rushed there to save their boss...

_**Flashback- end**_

* * *

The guardian's memories weren't clear about what happened after Tsuna got shot. They remember something about fighting with that bastard. They must have lost, looking at their injuries. According to the chauffeur, they were pretty messed up when the rescue team arrived. They were holding the dying boss in their shaking hands. The buret was taken to hospital and the surgeons had to do a life-saving operation on him. He barely survived.

Knocking could be heard on the hospital room's door, then it slammed open.

"Sawada! We heard what happened so we extremely rushed here!" the now a bit older, but still energetic as ever Sun guardian burst into the room and rushed to the bed. "Come on Sawada, stop sleeping already! You went through extreme training, you can't be defeated that easily! I know you'll be alright!" Ryohei grabbed the fragile Brunet's shoulders, anyone could see in his eyes that he was worried.

_'Big brother... ' _Tsuna just stood behind him. He wished they could hear him.

"That's enough, lawn-head!" the bomber pulled the Sun Guardian back. "Just as I told you on the phone... the Tenth is in a coma, so he probably can't hear you... no matter what you say" he lowered his head.

Actually, he could hear and see everything. He was still freaked out by this fact. He was there, but at the same time he wasn't there. It didn't make any sense.

The door opened again. But this time it was... _'Hibari?! So... he came too' _the brunet let out a sad smile.

The strongest guardian walked straight to the bed, ignoring the other guardians.

"Hey, promised me a fight. Don't you dare die before that, or I'll bite you to death "Wake up! Wake up!" chirped the small bird on Hibari's shoulder.

"That doesn't make any sense!" the bomber wanted to reach the Cloud Guardian, but Yamamoto held him back

"Maa maa, calm down. He must be worried too"

Hibari gave the swordsman a death glare to tell him to take back what he just said.

_'Could it be... Hibari-san is worried about me?' _ during these years as Tsuna was becoming stronger and stronger, Hibari slowly started to acknowledge him. Of course he would never say this out loud.

At that moment someone knocked on the door silently.

"S-Sorry to disturb..." the Mist Guardian entered the room with the 9 years old Lambo in her hands. Her eyes widened as she saw her Boss like that. She looked at everybody with a worried face. " H-how is he?"

"Still the same. His condition hasn't changed at all." answered Yamamoto seriously.

"I see..." her eyes started to tear up a bit. She was really worried. Since she heard about the incident from Ryohei, she couldn't think about anything else. The girl picked up Lambo -whom she was looking after at that time- and rushed there to see how is her Boss.

The room became silent again.

'Chrome... so you came too. Thank you. ' the brunet tried to touch the girl's shoulder to comfort her, but it was no use. He knew that she probably couldn't hear or feel a thing.

"E-eh?" she looked up.

"Hm? Something's wrong?" asked Yamamoto.

"I-it was just for a moment, but... I felt like... Boss was here." she gently touched her shoulders.

Tsuna was surprised. Maybe she can sense his presence?... It is possible Chrome is more sensitive for there things, since she almost died once.

"Of course you feel like he is here, we **are** standing next to him..." the silver haired got angry at the statement and looked at his lying boss.

"N-no... it felt like he was standing next to me, trying to comfort me... a-and I still feel like it." she couldn't really describe what she felt, so it just sounded ridiculous.

"Whatever..." the bomber just shrugged it off. It was just too foolish. There's no way she _really _felt something like that

... **right?**


	4. The first night

Hello! I'm sorry for the late chapter, things happened...

But here it is, I hope it's not that bad as it was at first.

* * *

"The question is... who attacked us?" Yamamoto broke the room's silence.

"Probably a hostile family. They could gain power and respect if they kill the Tenth... It's obvious" looked down the bomber annoyed.

"But he must be and extremely strong guy if he managed to put Sawada in this condition even with the two of you being there!" burst out the Sun Guardian. The mentioned two just lowered their heads and their eyes were shadowed.

"Damn it, we don't have a single clue!" Gokudera remembers even talking to the attacker, but he couldn't recall what he or the man said.

The room's door opened. The Mist Guardian came back.

"E-excuse me, I-I just received a call from Dino-san, he said that he arrives tomorrow and he will visit immediately." Chrome who was previously talking on the phone outside, looked at the others. "A-about Reborn-san... He has no idea where could he be, either"

The six guardians were standing in the room quietly. Some time, maybe hours passed like this, when someone knocked on the door.

"Excuse me! I'm afraid visiting hours are over. You have to leave the room soon." a nurse came in with a notepad is her hands.

Everybody snapped out of their deep thinking.

The Cloud Guardian just walked out of the room, but he glanced back at the lying brunet before he left. "Don' t disappoint me, Omnivore." the small bird flew after it's master.

"We have to leave then..." Chrome grabbed Lambo's hand and walked to the bed. "Hope you wake up soon, Boss" then she kissed the boy's pale cheeks. She looked at everyone, nodded and left the room.

Ryohei stopped the door from closing and shouted back "Sawada! You'd better be extremely awake when I come back!" he left too, following Chrome and Lambo.

Only two of his friends were still standing in the room, along with the nurse.

"There's no way I'm gonna leave the Tenth here alone like this!" he glared at the nurse who was surprised about the sudden outburst.

"W-well, if you insist, I can allow one person to stay for the night to watch over him..." she looked at her notepad.

Yamamoto wanted to volunteer, but he had a feeling that told him to just look at his own wounds and bandages. Then remembered that he has to go back soon to his room which is in the other wing of the building. He wanted to stay, but it was better if the Storm Guardian remains here. He smiled nervously and looked at the bomber.

"Gokudera, then you-"

"Of course I'm the one who's staying baseball freak!" he lumped down on the small hospital chair beside his boss's bed "If that's all, go back to your room already"

Yamamoto looked at the brunet and smiled "Good night, Tsuna. Get better soon!" then he waved to Gokudera with his uninjured arm and went out with the nurse who bowed.

* * *

The room was quite dark and silent.

The bomber gazed at the lying boy. "Tenth..." he frowned and held back his tears. He had to be strong for his boss. If he's not strong now, then who will be? He clenched his fists and tried to calm down. Tenth wouldn't want to see his right-hand man like this.

"Everything will be alright." he tried not to lose his temper again _'that's right. The boss will definitely wake up.' _he wanted to believe that. This person saved his life, treasured and accepted him as a friend.

But... in the end **he couldn't protect him.**

_Tenth. When I first saw you, I didn't know what to think._

_It had been rumored that the 10th Vongola Boss candidate is a Japanese teenager. It was only something you could hear walking on the streets of Italy, so the information wasn't trustworthy. So I was determined to see him with my own eyes, see the world's greatest Famiglia's future boss._

_At first glance, you looked like an average middle school student. Or rather a very clumsy, no-good student who always gets bad grades. Is this what a future mafia boss looks like?_

_When we were standing face to face in the school yard, I looked at your desperate expression and I was sure you would lose against me._

_Back then in Italy when I escaped from father's mansion, nobody would let me in their family._

_'Go away, kid'_

_'Don't think any family will let some toff like you in'_

_'You are only good for the piano' _

_they used to say every single time. What I am I trying to achieve by this? Why did I even come here? _

_I sighed and pulled out my dynamites. This boy doesn't stand a chance against me, I thought. Even so, when I looked into your big brown eyes, I saw something I haven't seen in other's. It was something warm. At that moment my hands were shaking. I realized I didn't want to hurt you. Why? Well, that didn't matter since I already lit all the bombs. I accidentally dropped one of them. So that was it. It's the end...for me. How pathetic._

_I haven't even blinked once, when burning determination replaced the warmth in your eyes and you extinguished all the fuses._

_You... saved my life even thought I tried to kill him. I thought there's no doubt. This person __**is**__ the Vongola Decimo. I want to follow and serve him until my death. I want to protect his smile. I will be his loyal right-hand man that he can depend on anytime. Since we are a family._

_'But I failed... I failed you, Boss' he thought._

"Heh... I'm so pathetic." He looked at his unconscious boss and clenched his fists again. If only he could help him, he wouldn't have ended up like that "I... don't deserve to be the Tenth's right-hand man at all... Maybe I really don't belong anywhere"

Just as he said it, the vase of flowers that was standing on the bedside table, fell down on the floor and crashed. The Storm Guardian snapped out of his depressed look and looked at the broken vase with wide eyes.

"How the hell did it fell down?" It was a bit scary. The vase fell down on it's own. The window wasn't even open, so it couldn't be the wind. He sighed and knelt down to pick up the pieces. He hissed when he accidentally cut his finger.

* * *

_**"Excuse me! I'm afraid visiting hours are over. You have to leave the room soon." **_

Tsuna looked at his friends. He didn't want them to leave yet. He still didn't understand what the hell was going on. The talking about the attacker's identity didn't help much. His memories of the incident slowly started to return in parts, but he only remembered that the man had black hair and sharp emerald eyes. But nothing more.

Hibari started to walk off, when the brunet tried to reach out for him.

"W-wait, Hibari-san!" but it had no effect at all.

_**"Don't disappoint me, Omnivore." **_

He watched his Cloud Guardian walking away. He...really was concerned about Tsuna's condition. it made him somehow feel a bit better.

_**"We have to leave then..."**_

The Mist Guardian kissed the lying brunet. As he watched this from behind, he slightly blushed.

The Lightning Guardian besides the girl was trying his best to not to cry.

**"Hope you wake up soon, Boss" **

"Chrome, Lambo...you know... I hope that too" the young boss laughed nervously, then he suddenly realized that Chrome was the only one who could sense him in some way. If she leaves now, nothing will change.

"Wait, please don't leave yet!" he grabbed her arms.

_'Eh?' _She looked at her friends confused, as if she wanted to tell them something, but she just nodded as a goodbye and left.

"Chrome..." the brunet just watchedd as she was walking away.

_**"Sawada! You'd better be extremely awake when I come back!" **_

"Big brother, I..." he wanted to say something but the boxer left before he could say it. Well, he probably couldn't have heard it anyways.

_**"W-well, if you insist, I can allow one person to stay for the night to watch over him..." **_

Tsuna saw Yamamoto was ready to tell the nurse he's willing to stay, so he ran to him

"Yamamoto, you can't! You are bady injured! You must go back to your room..." after he told him that, the Rain Guardian _really stopped. _As if he heard, or felt him at least.

_**"Gokudera, then would you-"**_

_**"Of course I'm the one who's staying baseball freak!" **_

"Gokudera-kun... thank you." said the brunet.

_**"Good night, Tsuna. Get better soon!" **_

Tsuna couldn't help but smile when he saw Yamamoto's usual grinning. Somehow it always calmed him and everyone else down.

"I...I'll try..." that's right. He will wake up from his coma and return to his body. If only he knew how he could do it...

Quite some time has passed already when Gokudera finally spoke. But it wasn't something Tsuna would expect from the bomber.

_**"Heh... I'm so pathetic."**_

"What? Gokudera-kun, don't say things like that!" Tsuna stood up from the place he was sitting next to the bed. It was the first time he saw his friend this depressed blaming himself. Of course he said things like that before, but more in a panicking way. But this time, he said it seriously.

_**" I... don't deserve to be the Tenth's right-hand man at all... Maybe I really don't belong anywhere"**_

"Gokudera-kun!" he swung his hand towards the vase that was standing next to him and accidentally hit it. The vase fell down and broke.

"Huh?" he looked at his fist with wide eyes. "I... I did this? But how?" he actually managed to knock down a solid thing in his current condition.

_**"How the hell did it fell down?" **_

That was something the brunet wanted to know as well.

Then... it's possible to make some contact with the world even if he's like this? If that was the case, he must find a way to tell everybody that he actually became a ghost...or something like that, and he needs his friends' help so they can make out how he could wake up...


	5. The ghost

Hi!~

I finished this chapter much faster than expected. Well, almost...

So, let's begin:

* * *

"Okay, that was strange..." Gokudera picked up all the broken vase pieces and threw them out in the bin, then picked up the flowers and placed them down on the bedside table. He looked down and saw that he's standing in the spilled water. He sighed.

"There must be a floorcloth somewhere" he opened the closet hoping that there would be one. Soon he found it at the very back, behind the bucket. He would ask for an other vase for the flowers the next morning.

Meanwhile, Tsuna was standing there, staring at his fist thinking how had he managed to knock down that vase.

_'So, let's think it over. I just hit the vase with my right hand. And it actually fell down'_ he gulped _'Which means... if I really want to, I'm able to do something to tell the others about my situation. Also... it means it really isn't a dream. I really am here. And the same time, my body is... there'_ he looked at himself who was lying in the bed.

_"Creepy..."_ he shuddered. His body looked so pale and lifeless. He then looked down at his 'current' hands. It wasn't very different from normal, but if you looked very close, maybe it was a bit transparent. Or it could just have been the darkness playing with his eyes. Yeah, it must be that...

Suddenly he felt something strange.

Gokudera walked to the place where the water spilled to and started to wipe it up. Yeah, but he didn't notice that he literally walked through his boss. Through his spirit, at least. That was the moment when Tsuna felt extremely lonely and heart-broken because of the realization. It's not an everyday thing that someone walks through you. Not to mention when a friend does it.

It was too dark to see if some shard remained there or not. So the Storm Guardian walked to the switch to turn on the lights.

Right after that, the lamps started to flicker. They flickered more and more as the brunet felt more and more disappointed.

"Seriously" the bomber was annoyed and a bit nervous. "What's with this hospital? Is it haunted or something?!" he saw several films like that. He was interested in those things, so he knew the self-falling vase and the flickering lamps weren't good signs.

Gokudera gulped and almost started to chant some exorcism, but he calmed himself down.

Tsuna soon realized that the lamps were flickering because of his emotions changing. When he felt sad or angry, they flickered more. So, the only thing he could do is calm down and look at the situation in a different way._'"Heh...I really did become a ghost..." _ He will definitely wake up. He can't be like this forever. He hoped so.

The thrilled bomber was walking around the room for the rest of the night, thinking.

* * *

**That morning**

"Ghosts?" asked Yamamoto confused.

"Yeah. Ghosts are haunting the Tenth's room." Gokudera was absolutely sure about that.

_"Oh, great... well, Gokudera-kun kinda got the point..." sweatdropped Tsuna._

"Haha I don't think that's the case, Gokudera" the swordsman couldn't help but laugh. It sounded so ridiculous. "Maybe you were just imagining things since you didn't sleep last night"

"I know what I'm talking about baseball-idiot!" shouted at him the silver haired "We have to get rid of the ghost as soon as possible before the Tenth gets hurt! Or worse, the ghost possesses him while he's in coma!"

_"Haha, well if I could really go back into my body, in other words 'possess myself', I would be happy... Wait. G-get rid of?!" Tsuna was not too enthusiastic about that idea, since he __**is **__the ghost._

"Maa maa, calm down Gokudera, I'm sure Tsuna won't let that to happen" grinned Yamamoto.

"That's not how it is idiot!" the bomber got annoyed.

The talking among the two got interrupted as the door opened. A tall, young, blonde man stepped in with an other, older man at his side.

"Yo." he waved. He wore a swamp green jacket and the man behind him wore a black suit and glasses.

"Dino-san?!" the two guardians exclaimed in synch_. "Dino-san!" the brunet was more than happy when he saw the mafia boss._

"I came to visit my little brother" the young man looked at the lying boy with sad eyes. "How is he?"

"Still the same. He makes no response no matter what we do." answered Gokudera looking away from the mafioso.

"I see..." he closed his eyes "Well, I'd like to listen to the details what exactly happened." he took off his coat and handed it to his subordinate. The three men sat down to have a long talk.

...

* * *

"So... a man, probably a hositle family's boss, sent assassins to attack you as you were on your way to an important meeting. Apparently, they were weaker than expected, and so finally the boss himself appeared. When you heard the sound of Tsuna's X-burner, you rushed there, not caring about Tsuna's command or your injuries" he glanced at Yamamoto who was just scraching his head with his uninjured arm" but... it only got him distracted, and in the end that guy shot him...am I right?" everybody looked at the lying brunet.

"S-something like that..." the two guardians were looking away, avoiding eye contact since they were ashamed of the memories.

"Still...That man forced Tsuna to use the X-burner... he must be very strong. Just who the hell is he? And more importantly... what is his goal? If he wanted to kill Tsuna at all costs, he would have probably done it already and wouldn't risk that he maybe survives... Is it possible that he wanted to prevent Tsuna from arriving at the meeting...? There are so many other possibilities too... first, we have to insvestigate who that black haired and emerald eyed person could be"

Dino was thinking, clasping his hands.

"Romario, go check who was supposed to attend the meeting that my little brother was invited to. Maybe we can make out something of that information."

The man in black suit slightly bowed and went out "Then excuse me"

Dino then looked at the two guardians. "Say, you still don't remember what happened after Tsuna got shot?"

The two boy looked at each other "Well...

_"Tenth!"_

_"T-tsuna..."_

_"What the hell have you done you bastard, how dare you..!"_

_"..."_

_"Wait, Gokudera, don't!"_

_"Hehe... you two shouldn't interfere in this. I can't let you mess up the plan"_

"No... we don't... remember anything"

"Well, it can't be helped then." Dino put his hands on the guardians' shoulders. "It must have been a great shock for you two. You should take a rest. Could you at least sleep well last night?" looked at the weary looked boys the Cavallone worriedly.

"Gokudera couldn't, because of a vase-breaking ghost" grinned Yamamoto at the angry bomber.

"Shut up baseball idiot! It's a serious matter!"

"Haha sorry" laughed Yamamoto.

"A vase-breaking ghost?" stared confusedly Dino at the silver haired.

"Yeah. So what?" crossed his hands Gokudera.

"He said this ghost haunts Tsuna's room and wants to possess him" smiled and pointed at his friend behind him.

"W-well, that's interesting..." smiled Dino scratching the back of his head. "But I'm sure there isn't such a thing, Gokudera"

_"Great... now I'm an evil vase-breaking ghost who haunts the hospital room of a poor boy in coma... oh and I evilly want to possess him. Fantastic." Tsuna already pulled himself together and reconciled to the situation. He thought it can't have become like this by chance. There must be a reason for it. Still, he has to somehow make contact with the others. Like he did last night. __But.. in a more effective way._

The bomber was very pissed off because those idiots didn't understand the seriousness of the situation. He wanted to shout at them, but calmed himself down. In the past years, counting began to help when he was angry. He's trying hard not to lose his temper that often lately. It's for his Boss' sake.

"Fine, tonight you or the baseball idiot will stay so you can see it with your own eyes" said stubbornly.

"Then I'll stay with Tsuna" smiled widely the still heavily bandaged Rain Guardian. "I'll ask the nurse to let me stay."

"Yamamoto, those injuries..."

"Naah, I'm okay, much better than yesterday, don't worry."

Dino sighed "Okay then, in that case, I'll help Romario with the investigation and look through some documents. We have to find that bastard who dared to hurt my little brother" Dino's eyes grew serious. "I'll take my leave now. I'm coming tomorrow as well, I hope the others are coming too, so we can discuss what to do next." he put on his jacket, walked to the brunet's bed and stroked the sleeping boy's head. "Get better soon lil' bro" he smiled at him, waved then walked out.

_"Thank you, Dino-san" smiled Tsuna as he watched the Cavallone walking out. " I'll try my best"_


	6. The Second Night

"Okay baseball idiot. Then tonight... you'll stay." spilled out the bomber hardly. He wanted to stay beside his boss so bad, but the baseball nut has to see or at least sense the ghost so that he will believe it and take it seriously... well, seriously in his own way, at least.

"But if anything happens to the Tenth, I..." he clenched his teeth and glared at Yamamoto.

"Haha don't worry, Gokudera." he just waved it off. "There isn't a vase in the room right now and when I need light for something, I'll just use this candle instead of the lamps." grinned Yamamoto as he held in his palm a little candle he had previously asked for from the staff.

"This isn't just some stupid joke, idiot!" yelled at him at the sight of the small, coloured candle 'besides candles are even worse than lamps in this situation...' murmured the bomber.

They couldn't continue the converstation as someone knocked on the door. Just like yesterday, a nurse came in and told the boys one of them have to leave the room. Gokudera raced to the hospital bed and bowed deeply.

"I'm sorry, but I have to leave you here now, Tenth!" he then straightened up and glared back at Yamamoto.

"You'd better watch him properly during the night."

The tall teen just nodded and waved "Of course."

* * *

The little room became silent again. It seems the nights are always going to be like this. Nothing could be heard, other than the beeping of the ECG machine connected to the brunet. There were only two people now. Yamamoto, who was sitting in a comfortable looking chair -considering his injuries-, and the young boss in coma lying in the bed.

'His face looks so peaceful, like nothing happened. Still, it's pale like the wall...' thoughts like that ran across the swordsman's head.

He needed something that can take his attention away from the sad sight of his injured friend.

He pulled out a box of safety match from his pocket then lit the little candle carefully, not using his bandaged arm. He didn't really believe the fact that there's a ghost haunting Tsuna's room, but he was bored enough to test it.

'Well, nothing will happen anyways.' he shrugged and placed the candle down on the bedside table.

_'A candle? Well, maybe I can really do something with that. I remember once Gokudera said that ghosts can put out the flame of a candle with their presence. ... or something like that.' to be honest he didn't really bevieve in ghosts until that day. Well, there was a time when he was scared of them very much, especially after that dare of courage thing they did once on the day of the lantern festival about five years ago. He thought he had met Romeo's ghost, but later he found out the summoners Bianchi had hired were just illusionists. Well, Reborn was amused to see Tsuna freaking out._

"Um... hello, Mr. or Mrs. ghost...?" Yamamoto felt a bit awkward talking to a nonextistent ghost, but he decided to just play along.

_"Heh, Yamamoto..."_

"Haha, it's a kinda nice night, isn't it?" he walked to the window and pulled back the curtain that revealed a beautiful starry sky with an almost full moon. The moonlight illuminated the room and Tsuna's face became even paler. The rain guardian looked at the lying boy and frowned.

"You know, Mr. Ghost... my friend has gone through lots of things. He is our sky that accepts all of us just the way we are" he walked to the bed and sat down on the chair next to it "And one day we made a mistake. If only we did what he told us...' he touched his bandage on his hand. He didn't know where all of that came from, but he felt he needed to say these thing out loud.

"He always puts his friends's safety before his own...He's a very kind person. And that's why I think he's an awesome leader." he smiled and turned to his boss.

"Tsuna... I'm sorry. I wish you wake up soon."

_"Yamamoto... it's really not your fault... You two were just trying to help me, even though you were injured and I told you to stay in the car. But when you sensed that I was in danger, you two came immediately to rescue me. I... couldn't wish for better friends than you." he slowly approached the boy and the candle._

The candle's flame started to dance like wind was blowing.

"Hm?" Yamamoto turned there.

The candle then got extinguished by itself and started to smoke.

"Haha it seems Gokudera's ghost really showed up" he scratched the back of his head and laughed.

_"Ah! I managed to put it out, just as Gokudera-kun said!" Tsuna was kinda happy because of that._

"Um... I don't really know how to communicate with ghosts, but-" he stopped talking because he heard footsteps from outside. The doorhandle slowly went down and the door was opening. Yamamoto grabbed an umbrella that was standing next to the door, ready to fight with one hand if neccessary. The door fully opened and someone stepped in.

"Hm? Oh, it's just you, Gokudera" he put down the umbrella and smiled. For some strange reason, he wasn't surprised seeing Gokudera here right now.

"Yeah, I sneaked in...the hospital's security system isn't a big deal." he shrugged it off "I can't let the boss stay in potential danger, especially when only you are with him" the bomber said it like it was obvious.

"Haha, I see..." he ignored the last part of the sentence "By the way, what is that thing in your hand?" Yamamoto looked curiously at the big, square shaped, flat object.

"It's an oujia board" what else could it be?! It was made of wood and there was something written on it: Yes, No, and all the numbers and letters in the English alphabeth.

"Oujia board?" looked at the silver haired confusedly. "Oh, it's that thing that is used for communicating with ghosts, right?" grinned Yamamoto. "So we're gonna use that?"

"Of course, baseball idiot. We are going to find out if that ghost is dangerous or not." Gokudera sat down and put the table on the floor. "Wat are you waiting for?! Bring here the candle and let's get started!"

_"Wait. Are you serious...?" sweatdropped Tsuna. _

Yamamoto picked up the candle and lit it again.

_"Yes. You are serious.'_

"We are doing it on the floor? Oh, okay" laughed Yamamoto and sat down. Gokudera pulled out a triangle shaped thing which had a hole on it.

_'I can't believe they are actually doing this with me.'_

"So, put your hand on it and just let it move when the ghost answers my questions" the swordsman thought it was fun and just nodded.

_Tsuna sighed and sat down 'Haah, I never thought that someday the only way I could communicate with people is the ouija board...actually, I never thought that I'll become a ghost in the first place... Well, I wonder what his first question is going to be... probably my name or something'_

"Okay. Ghost! Are you here because you want to possess the Tenth?!" looked up the silver haired angrily.

_"...Well, that was fast"_

"Um, Gokudera... isn't it a bit straightforward?" laughed Yamamoto. "I mean, shouldn't we ask about it's gender, age or identity first?"

_'Okay, then let's try this... I just put my hand on this thing and move it to the right place, right...?"_

"We are not doing an interview or whatever! Besides, this is the most important question right no-" he couldn't finish his sentence because the triangular thing started to move. Through the hole, the word 'No' could be seen.

"It's working!" exclaimed the two _and Tsuna,_ surprised.

"Haha, see? It's not going to possess Tsuna" grinned Yamamoto.

"S-shut up, basebbal idiot! W-well then, I'll ask the next question-"

"Wait Gokudera, let me ask the next one." he was thinking for a while "Hm... can you walk through walls or other things?" smiled.

"What kind of question is that?!" yelled Gokudera at the baseball idiot who just laughed.

"But I really want to know that!"

_'A typical Yamamoto question at times like this!' thought Tsuna. _

_Well, he hasn't tried to walk through one yet... he went near to the wall. He almost walked straight into it, but stopped, in case he can't walk through it. Well, he was right. He could touch the wall and even hit it (without any sound), but he just couldn't reach over it no matter how many times he tapped it. In the end he was just leaning against the wall. He was a bit disappointed, would be cool to wander around everywhere without using the doo- _

_'Waaah!' he felt like losing his balance and falling over._

_The brunet practically fell through the wall and he was now sitting in the corridor. He stood up and looked around. 'Huh? I... the wall...' he was confused, but after a few moments of thinking he sighed. 'It looks like if I'm not concentrating on touching the wall like normal people would, I __**can**__ go through it. Well, it's a bit weird...' he walked back through the wall -he succeeded only the second time- and moved the thing with the hole to the word Yes._

The two guardians looked at the answer. "So now we know" grinned the rain guardian. the storm guardian just sighed. "Haha, okay, then the next ques-"

"Don't ask one more stupid question, baseball idiot! We don't have time playing around!" growled at Yamamoto the bomber.

_'That's true... I have to tell them I'm not just some ghost wandering around -well, maybe I am- because of boredom. I have to tell them I need help.'_

"I'll ask something useful. Ghost! What's your name?" asked Gokudera. On the board there were just English letters, but it didn't matter at all.

_'Yes! They finally asked it! Then I'll just move the hole to the T,S,U and-' the brunet froze 'Eh?' he looked at his hands. They were flickering like they was about to disappear and show up again. He felt extremely weak and felt severe pain in his chest. "Wh-what's happening?!"_

The beeping sound that could be heard all the time suddenly sped up, then it sounded like it wanted to stop anytime.

"T-the ECG device!" they both stood up and rushed to the bed.

"Yamamoto, press the emergency button!" the swordsman didn't hesitate and pressed the red button next to him to call for a doctor immediately.

"Tenth, please hang in there!" Gokudera hold the pale hand of his boss.

* * *

Meanwhile, Dino was sitting at his desk in the hotel room, looking through the documents Romario had found about suspicious families.

One envelope grabbed his attention. He then looked at the list of the invited people to the meeting.

'Besides the Vongola Decimo, three other bosses were invited.

One of them is an ally, the other two aren't.

But that two were in alliance with each other.

Maybe they planned something to wipe the boss of strongest family away from their way? Either way, the attacker knew of the meeting, since timing of the attack.

I received a report about the three bosses being there already during the incident.

So the attacker must be someone else.' he sighed 'Our ally, the Falco familia is a rising family ever since they formed an alliance with the Vongola.

They don't have any reason to kill Tsuna.

The other two we were going to form an alliance with, is the Giorno and Notte familia. They are very close to each other. However, they are still very small.

In fact... Vongola is the familia that is standing in their way of development.

The question is that, whether they want to become stronger with the help of the Vongola, or without it...

I can assume they want help because of the alliance meeting.

But the meeting never happened because of the attack... maybe the meeting was just a cover up...' he slowly put aside all the papers.

"Waah, it's so complicated!" he ruffled his hair.

"It would be best if the two guardians who were with him could remember something useful..." he took a deep breath and started to look through the papers again.


	7. Don't Give Up

Well, this is the longest chapter, I've written yet. And sorry for being a bit late! ^^'

* * *

The ECG was beeping like crazy and the two boys started to panic even more by every second.

"Where the hell's the doctor already?!" Gokudera tightened his grip. Tsuna's pale hand was so hot. "At this rate the Tenth-"

At that moment the door slammed open and the senior doctor stepped in with two assistants. As soon as he looked at the ECG screen he clenched his teeth and ordered the assistants to perform cardiac massage on the dying boy right away. The two men started it immediately and the guardians stepped away to let them work.

"Don't stop, just keep it up!" the doctor acted quickly and checked the sweating brunet's temperature. His forehead was burning. "Come on boy, don't give up...!"

_Tsuna was kneeling on the floor panting and his chest hurt like hell. 'W-why?!...' he gulped and closed his eyes, waiting for whatever was to come.'Why is this happening?!'_

The doctors worked hard, but after ten minutes they succesfully managed to restore his pulse to normal. His breathing was slow and he was sweating heavily.

_Tsuna took a deep breath and slowly stood up. He felt much better. It didn't seem like he was about to disappear anymore. _

_'What the hell was that?!' he looked at himself frowning. Then turned to the doctors who sighed in relief because they succeeded to save him. He wanted to thank them and his only he could._

The assistans placed a cold, wet towel on his head. The doctor looked at the two worried boys. He wondered why were they here when there aren't supposed to be any visitors now. Even so, it was very fortunate that they were here now and could warn them in time.

"He still has a quite high fever." declared the doctor as he looked at the thermometer. "Aside from that, his life is not in danger at the moment. He is lucky that you two were with him." he put his hands on the boys' shoulder. "You can leave the rest to us. Go back to your room."

The doctor tried to calm them down, but he knew that this incident doesn't mean good. He was kinda worried too.

The guardians were so relieved that Tsuna isn't danger now, but they were concerned about his fever. He had been shot and now is in coma. High temperature isn't normal. The two looked at their boss whose face was all red from the fever. Gokudera wanted to reach his boss, but Yamamoto looked at him to tell not to.

He sighed and picked up the oujia board that was still lying on the floor. The two boy thanked the doctors and left. They walked to Yamamoto's room and spent the night there. Nevertheless, they couldn't sleep at all.

"How could this happen?" asked Gokudera sitting on a chair with lowered head and clasped hands.

Yamamoto was in the same position, but on the bed. "He's alright now. More or less..."

"Yeah..."

They couldn't say a word for at least an hour.

_Tsuna followed them and hoped that it wouldn't be problem if he goes a bit away from near his body. _

_So far nothing happened. _

_Good. _

_Now, it was time for thinking. 'What exactly happened? Let's see what I was doing before all of this...' He sat down on the floor and tried to remember everything. '_

_Oh, Yamamoto and Gokudera-kun asked my name and I was trying to answer them. Unfortunately I couldn't finish it. I wonder if they manged to figure it out or not._

"Hey... the last question we asked from the ghost before the emergency signal... do you remember what were the first letters he showed us?" Yamamoto broke the silence.

"How can you think of that now, out of all times?" sighed Gokudera. This wasn't the moment they should talk about some ghost that apparently wasn't dangerous. "It was about his name, I think. By the way, I can't remember... I didn't have time to get a good look."

"I see...Me neither"

_'So they don't know... damn it.' he punched the floor while he was looking down. 'It was the most important part and I couldn't tell them. Why?!' _

_He wasn't sure what would have happened if they had learnt that Tsuna is the ghost. Could they help him anyways? _

_Well it doesn't matter, since he definitely can't do any progress alone._

_And at least his friends wouldn't have to worry for him anymore. That's the most important thing here. Tsuna sighed again._

_'Why couldn't I tell them my name? Right when I wanted to, this thing happened and- ...eh? What...what if it happened __**because **__I wanted to tell them who I am? What if I can't tell them for some reason? ... If I'm right, I am in a big trouble...'_

_He couldn't stand the silence and the suffocating atmosphere in that room, so he decided to go back and check on his body. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, trying to forget that there's a wall. _

_Okay, he made it out of Yamamoto's room without bumping straight into the wall. With the same method, he went into his own. There were the main doctor, his two assistants and a nurse._

"This is no good. I've never seen someone still being alive with this high fever. Not to mention his coma..." the doctor seemed extremely troubled " I can't understand what's happening to this boy. Either way, we must keep an eye on him." he turned to the nurse.

"His two friends were shivering by just seeing him like this. If they ask, say that he has a high fever and don't let them in, if possible."

The nurse nodded.

* * *

As dawn broke, the two boys were getting ready to go back to Tsuna's room.

On their way, they ran across Dino and Ryohei who just arrived. They were about to go in Tsuna's room.

"Oh, hello" waved Yamamoto, but not as bright as usual.

"Hm? Cavallone and the tur-... Ryohei" Gokudera was still down.

During the night, he decided that he would become more collected to become the best right hand man possible for Tsuna, for when he wakes up.

The young boss had asked him numerous times to drop those nicknames already. However, he couldn't easily kick the habit and in the end, gave it up.

Maybe the fact that he almost lost his boss last night, scared him and made him realize that it's possible he never sees his dear Tenth wake up again. He shuddered. This was a long long night.

"Y-yo." Ryohei was a bit startled. Has he ever heard Gokudera call him by his name? He knew that something bad must have been happened just by looking at the two.

"Hey, guys." looked at them Dino. "Yamamoto, how was the night with Tsuna? Did anything happen?"

"Actually... his condition worsened, and we had to make an emergency call. Fortunately, the doctors managed to save him" frowned the swordsman.

Dino's and Ryohei's eyes widened. "What?! Is he alright now?"

"We don't know, they sent us out. But when we left, he had a high fever and didn't looked too well..."

When the two wanted to react, a nurse stopped next to them. "Are you here to visit Mr. Sawada?"

"Yes, we are"

"I'm terribly sorry, but I'm afraid he can't receive visitors today. He has a very high temperature for unknown reasons, and the doctors are currently trying to find a solution."

The four men just looked at her, worried.

"We understand. Please inform us if he get's better." Dino was worried more than yesterday, but he was also determined to find that bastard who did this. The nurse just bowed and walked away.

"Sawada..." well, the boxer expected Tsuna to be much better than he last saw him, so it was a shock.

"Well then... if we can't visit Tsuna, we have to find an another room where we can talk privately." said Dino disappointed.

"Let's go to my room. We spent the rest of the night there with Gokudera. It's a good place for talking." suggested Yamamoto.

* * *

"So. I found some things that may be useful for us. On the meeting, there were 3 bosses. The Boss of our ally, the Falco Famiglia, and the other two, Giorno and Notte Famiglias. If we want to find a culprit, we have to look for him among their allies. I suspect that Giorno and Notte families hired someone to kill Vongola Decimo before he would have arrived at the meeting, where they were supposed to form a new alliance. This way, they wouldn't be suspicious, -so they thought." declared Dino.

"But it's all is just speculation. What we need is, you to remember something. Even a little thing could be useful." Dino was waiting for some kind of answer. Ryohei looked at them the same way.

The guardians became even more serious.

"...Let us think for a while."

* * *

_Tsuna heard out Dino's speech. To be honest, it wasn't really a new information for him. In the invitation letter, everything was written down. He was really grateful for Dino to investigate all night, but he knew that it's not something that he could solve alone. Where the hell is Reborn when he's needed?! The young boss hadn't seen him for half a month. _

_He sighed and decided to take a walk in the hospital. _

_As he walked on the aisles, he saw old people trying their best walking, as their families were supporting them. _

_He saw recovering children, asking their mom when can they go out to play again with their friends. _

_He saw a wife laughing relieved and happily with her husband, who just learned that he successfully recovered from a serious illness. He saw less fortunate people, who couldn't even move and were just lying in their bed with people surrounding them, crying for their loved ones. _

_A hospital is a sad and happy place. In his case, he just felt great sadness and depression._

_He walked around for good an hour till now, so he decided to sit down in the hall on an empty seat. An old man in white clothes sat down beside him._

_"Boy"_

_Tsuna looked at the man, not like he was talking to him anyways, - he thought._

_"It's kind of peaceful, isn't it?" the man continued "__**To become free from the burden of life, I mean**__."_

_The brunet looked at him frowning. It...can't be that he-..._

_"Hm? Don't look at me like that" chuckled the old man. "You must be the same as me, aren't you?"_

_"Do you... can you really see me ?" asked the boy startled._

_"Why, of course." smiled the man and ruffled his hair "I can assume that you had gone trough a lot of things."_

_Tsuna couldn't help but ask. "Mister... are you... I mean.. by any chance,... are you-"_

_"Dead?"_

_The boy looked at him with a sad look._

_The old man just smiled. He pointed to the other side of the longue._

_"That crying girl over there with her mom is my grandchild and my daughter. They stayed with me until my last breath, holding my hand. I told them that I love them very much. I felt their hands shaking and the last thing I heard was them, saying that they love me too. At that moment, I found eternal peace."_

_Tsuna couldn't help, but get a bit teary eyed. 'E-eh?' he tried to wipe it off. He thought he had overcame his too much sensitivity._

_"Hehe, don't worry, boy. It's the time for relief. You must let out all the feelings. You should cry if you want to."_

_The brunet looked at the man and tried to calm down. "I... I'm not dead yet. I'm in a coma. And it kills me inside seeing my friends so worried about me. I want to return to them and see them smile again." he looked like he was begging for help, however he knew he can't do anything._

_The old man looked at the boy with sad eyes and put his hand on his shoulder and stood up. _

_"I wish you the best, boy. With this strong will, I'm sure you will be able to wake up. Just stay strong for your friends and family, and never lose yourself." he smiled, giving hope to the boy who almost lost it all._

_"I'm sorry, but I have to go now. The wheel of my time has come to an end. I'm saying farewell to my family and go on my way." he smiled "Remember, you are never alone. There will always be someone with you. Even if you aren't fully aware of it. Now, Farewell, boy"_

_With that, he disappeared._

_Tsuna whispered "Thank you"_

_The brunet was silent for a while, then stood up. He clenched his fist and decided to bring everything to light, for the sake of returning to his family 'Here we go!"_

_During this time, someone in a black suit and suitcase was getting of a plane at the airport of Verona. He walked to the reception desk._

* * *

_"I'd like to call for a taxi."_

_"I understand. Can I ask on what name?"_

_He smirked. "Reborn"_


End file.
